From Far Away
by mileouttahell
Summary: Boy meets ghost, and the authors have gone insane! (OK, not really.) Sorry, I'll be serious. Sato moves into (yet another) new house, and is worried he won't have any friends...until he meets a friendly ghost...(PG-13 for a definite shounen-ai second chap
1. How They Dance in the Courtyard

Disclaimer: We don't own Pokemon, Pikachu, or Monopoly. Neither of us sees dead people, but if you sue us, we'll pretend we do, and then plead insanity. (And this joke will make more sense once you read the fic.)  
  
Author's Notes:   
  
Lucia: Hi, all! Dana and Lucia here, writing a story-   
  
Setsuna: Or attempting to.   
  
Lucia: *baps her muse on the head* Quiet, you! Um, anyway...   
  
Dana: Yes, where were we? Oh yes! What brought about this story? Well, it's all Lucia's fault...   
  
Lucia: *sighs* Yup, it's always my fault, isn't it? ^_~ But I guess it was...*points wildly at her dog* his idea! Not mine!   
  
Dana: *snrk* Oh of course, blame the dog! And I suppose it's my cat's fault as well? Well, she does like to jump on the keyboard... Maybe if she did in the proper order...   
  
Joanie: *meows*   
  
Dana: Never mind. ^^   
  
Lucia: *pets cat* Nice kitty. Nice kitty. Pretty...*gets starry eyes and falls over*   
  
Dana: Aheheh... where was I? Oh yes... author's notes... just take it this way, this fic was inspired by a song, and since Lucia's distracted by the kitty I'll tell you which... Hotel California. And that should throw you for a loop completely... Lucia, anything to add? *pokes co-author*   
  
Lucia: Kitty. *_* Um...yeah...it was inspired by Hotel California... And in some way, that led, in my twisted mind, to ghosts. (A couple of the lines...)   
  
Dana: And well... that led from one thing to another...   
  
Lucia: Suprise! She wanted Hiro! ^^ Kitty...^_^   
  
Dana: Blow out your candles and maybe your wish will come true! *holds up cake* ^^ *kitty shaped cake* ^^   
  
Lucia: Kitty! *sticks face in cake*   
  
Dana: *hands Lucia the cake and laughs nervously* Enjoy the fanfic... ahehe...   
  
Archiving: Nope, this is ours, and WE (not Lucia and I, I think I'm being imperial here) ARE MEAN! Archiving only on end of summer and Lucia's site. Okay, and fanfiction.net too. Cause I'm nice. Confuzzling sentences, ne?   
  
Feedback: Feed the kitties! And the authors too. ^^ Millions of authors die each year due to lack of feedback... Have a heart! Give some feedback!   
~~~~~  
I floated downstairs and through a wall, peeping in on the family unloading stuff into the living room. This family wouldn't last long. None of them did, when they found out that there were ghosts living in the house. Too bad, too. The boy is so sweet-faced and full of life. Just the opposite of me. He looks really nice, I reflect, and wish I was alive so that we could be friends.   
"No one's stayed here very long..." the mother is saying, reflecting my own thoughts. "And when I tried to ask why not, I got some evasive answers...something about ghosts and a great tragedy."   
"Satoshi!" she yells suddenly. "Take your stuff upstairs and pick out a room."   
"OK, Mama," the boy, Satoshi, I assume, yells. I follow him upstairs, where he pokes through the rooms, until he comes to the room that used to be mine. "Cool!" he says cheerfully when he sees the old laundry chute. I had said pretty much the same thing when I first saw it. He immediately drops the box and suitcase he's carrying and fishes a penny out of it, dropping it down the chute and beaming.   
I didn't mean to materialize. It just tends to happen when I watch people enjoying themselves. He turned around, and with a startled squeak, jumped back. Oh, great, now I've done it. This one will last even less than the last five. His eyes widen and he sticks his hand through where my chest used to be.   
"Cool," he says. Wait. Did he just say "cool"?   
~~~~~  
"My name's Satoshi," I tell the red-haired boy who's in front of me. He's about my age... This is really cool. I didn't think that I'd find any friends in this house, and maybe he can be my friend. I wonder if he wants to be friends, though. My Mama moves so often, it's not funny anymore, "what's your name?"   
"Shigeru." He replies uneasily. I smile and move my hand. He really seems nervous and I don't know why. It's kind of like when I'm getting a really big gift for my birthday and I don't know what it is. You know, that kind of surprised.   
"I need to tell Mama about this. She..."   
He waves his arms frantically about. "No, no, please don't do that. Then she'd want to move and take you away..."   
I think I can understand that. I don't want to move. Not if the house has cool things like this. "Wanna be friends?" I ask. It's kind of funny, the look he has on his face. I mean, and I thought he looked surprised before.   
~~~~~  
"Y-yeah," I stammer. "I would love to be your friend. Can I call you Sato?" He nods solemnly up at me, his big brown eyes making him look innocent. How adorable. "What do you like to play?" I asked him.   
He pauses to consider for a moment, and pulls a stuffed toy out of his suitcase. "This is my stuffed Pikachu toy," he says, pointing to the little yellow mouse-like creature.   
"Pikachu?" I ask. "What's...Pikachu?"   
He frowns. "Everyone knows who Pikachu is! He's a guy on TV and he follows this girl around on adventures. And he gets the bad guys to leave them alone by zapping them."   
"Oh..." I said, still mystified.   
"Anyways, me an' Pikachu like to play in the woods and stuff together...and sometimes we play board games."   
"I like board games," I replied tentatively.   
"OK!" He says. "Then we can play Monopoly. 'Least until Mom gets the Playstation hooked up."   
~~~~~  
Shigeru still kind of looks kind of confused. But I drop Pikachu on the bed then kneel beside my bags and start to look for some of my games. They have to be somewhere in here... "Ah, here's Monopoly! I want to be the racecar... is that okay?"   
I look up at him and he nods. I smile and set the game down, pulling it apart. "I normally have ta play this with Mama. She says I don't know the rules right." I unfold the board. "I can play just fine. What piece do you want, Shigeru?"   
He sits down, a dazed look on his face. "Oh, um, the dog?"   
I smile and hand it to him. "Here."   
Okay, maybe Mama was right. "Um, do you know how to play-?"   
I can hear my Mama's footsteps on the stares, "Satoshi, where...? Oh, there you are darling. Satoshi... what are you doing sitting there by yourself?"   
I crinkle my nose and fold my arms across my chest. "I'm not alone, Shigeru's with me!"   
My mother looks blank then smiles and nods. "That's nice, darling. You need to try and unpack your things. There's a lot of work you have to do."   
She leaves me and I smile at Shigeru. "My Mama's funny, isn't she?"   
~~~~~  
"Ano..." I say. "Sato, your Mama's gonna think you're nuts." I state, looking at him. "I'll help you unpack, OK? Then we can play some more."   
"But I thought you couldn't touch stuff, cause my hand went right through you," Sato says. I concentrate for a moment, getting my hands to solidify enough to pick up a box. "Ohhh," he says. "Cool."   
I grin at him and begin to unload the box, putting stuff in the drawers of the dresser the moving people already brought up. "See?" I tell him cheerfully. "No prob."   
~~~~~  
I'm really glad that Shigeru's willing to help me. I mean, there's so much. And there's gonna be more... I'm just happy to have a friend like him. I mean, I really want him to be my friend...   
We move so much, though, so I'm worried that I'll have to move away from here, and him, too. And I don't want that to happen.   
"Hey, Sato, who's this?" He asks, and I turn from putting away socks to see what he's holding.   
"Oh, that's a picture of my Mama and my..." I turn away and put my socks in the drawer some more. "My Dad. He left us a couple years ago..." I'm not a little baby. I'm not gonna cry in front of Shigeru...   
Dad leaving really messed up everything. I think that's why Mama's so sad. And why my sister's off at boarding school. The family just got torn all to pieces... but I'm not gonna think about that. I'm not...   
"That's pretty tough, Sato..." He says softly and sets down the picture frame again.   
"But it's not that bad, cause you're here now, Shigeru." I say with a smile.   
~~~~~  
I must be blushing. I certainly feel embarrassed. "A-arigatou, Satoshi-kun," I mumble. "Ano...everyone else...was afraid of me. So I'm glad you're here, 'cause you're not scared of me."   
He looks somewhat puzzled. "Why should I be scared of you? You haven't tried to hurt me or anything."   
"Cause I'm a ghost!" I reply.   
"So? You're a nice ghost," he says cheerfully, attempting (unsuccessfully) to hug me around the waist. I firm up for a second and put my arm around his shoulder. "You're nice, Sato-kun."   
He sticks his tongue out at me. "'Course I am!" He looks a little sad. "You'll always be my friend, right, Geru?"   
"Sure," I agreed. I wasn't going anywhere.   
~~~~~  
I can't help but smile. I really believe him! He'll always be my friend... well, it's something nice ta think about for the time being, at least right now. I mean, Mama can't move right yet...   
I know she doesn't do it... malic... malcil... mailc... like she's mean or nothin', but still, she always decides to move once I've finally started to fit in. Sometimes, we're not even there long enough for that...   
"Thanks." I smile and hug him again.   
"I'll miss you when I have to go ta school, though..." I say, crinkling my nose. I hate school...why do I have to go, anyway?   
"I'll be here when you get back though, Sato..." he says softly.   
Well, I guess that's true. I grab some more clothes and start to shove them in the drawer. "You could always go with me, couldn't ya? That'd be so cool!"   
~~~~~  
I blink. "I don't know if I could, Sato-chan. I've never tried to go anywhere before. I just kinda...stay here. I think ghosts are supposed to be bound to the place where they die or something."   
"So you can't leave this room?" Sato pouts.   
"Well...maybe I can, now that I have a reason to. I'll try to go to school with you, Sato. Cause I really want to!"   
We've finished putting his stuff away. He doesn't have that much- maybe because he moves so often. "We could try playing a game, again." I frown. But not Monopoly.   
Sato pauses to consider, and then dives into the chest by his bed we didn't bother emptying and comes up with a pack of cards. "How about War?" he asks.   
"Sure!" I say, since he picked my favorite card game.   
~~~~~  
We play cards until my Mama comes up stairs to tell me I need to get ready to take my bath and eat dinner. She shakes her head at the cards all over the floor. "I was playing..."   
"Well, clean up, we'll be eating soon."   
I nod and stare at Shigeru once Mama's gone. "I guess I need to go... it was fun."   
He smiles. "It's not like you'll be gone forever."   
"Yeah true... so you'll think about going to school with me? I start tomorrow and I don't want to be alone..."   
He nods sincerely. "I promise I'll try."   
I smile and we clean up the mess of cards. "Thank you, Geru. You're gonna be a great friend."   
He's blushing again. He's such a silly boy. "Thank you, Sato. I'm glad you think so."   
I smile and then I hear my Mama's voice. I crinkle my nose. "I don't wanna take a bath... I hate taking baths..."   
He smiles. "Oh come on, it won't kill you or anything."   
"I know but Mama buys this girly smelling stuff..." I crinkle my nose again and Shigeru laughs out loud. I blink. "Did I say something funny?"   
~~~~~  
"Yeah..." I giggle at him. "But the girls will like you better if you smell like girl stuff instead of dirt 'n stuff. At least that's what Ma used to tell me."   
Sato blinks at me. "But I don't like girls. They're icky."   
I shrug. "Yeah, but Mama always said that when I got older, I'd feel bad for not being nicer to the girls. And Ma always knew what she was talking about, so I believed her."   
Sato makes a face. "Ano...and I trust you...so I guess I have to be nice to girls. Although that red-headed girl next door said hello when we were comin' in. She seemed OK, if a little bit bossy."   
I laughed. "Yeah, I've watched her a couple of times. She's a little bit tomboyish, and don't make her mad, but other than that, she's OK."   
He looks at me. "Really? Then maybe we could all be friends. I mean, if that's OK with you, an' she doesn't mind that you're a ghost."   
"OK, Sato," I agree, just to make him happy.   
~~~~~  
Shigeru really knows what he's talking about. I mean, my first day of school isn't even turning out that badly, now that he's around.   
Kasumi's even nice. But I like Shigeru lots better.   
Of course, we haven't even gotten to the recess. But how could things go bad when I have Shigeru around? He's my bestest friend ever...   
"Hey, Shigeru, do you eat lunch?"   
"Satoshi, who are you talking about?"   
I look up at the teacher and smile. "Oh, just to myself, Mishihara-sensei."   
The teacher shakes her head. Hey, I don't want anyone to find out about Shigeru... "Satoshi, you're pushing it too close."   
'S'all right, I don't mind.' I write down on my paper with a smile. I know he can read what I write, so it's a good way to talk to each other.   
"The teacher is going to think you're insane."   
I wrinkle my nose. 'But I'm not.'   
We argue like that and then the class gets let out for lunch and recess. You know, Shigeru never answered my question! "Shigeru, do you eat lunch?" I ask as I get my backpack and my Pikachu.   
"Aren't you too old to take that to school?"   
I glower up at him. "I am not! Pikachu's great so I can take him around with me..."   
We argue like that until we reach the schoolyard. Shigeru shuts up abruptly, and I wonder why... Oh, everyone is looking at us... I blush, I hate bein' stared at like that, and rush off with Pikachu in my arms and Shigeru behind me.   
"See what you got yourself into!" he says all superior like.   
I hmph in his general direction then sit down and end up starting to eat from my lunch box. "You're..."   
"Stop it, I need my lunch money..." Whoever said that, well, they don't seem rather enthused by it at all. I set down what I was eating, getting up to peak around where I'd secluded myself from the rest of the playground.   
"Hey! That's not fair!"   
"Sato..."   
"It's, *not*, Geru!"   
There's a pair of bullies over their, picking on a blond haired kid. Kind of looks my age or so... That's one thing that I don't like at all - bullies.   
"Oh, come on, Hiroshi," the girl with magenta hair laughs, "you need to fight back more than that!"   
Hiroshi groans and I run forward. This isn't fair at all! They shouldn't be picking on him like this... "Sato, don't!"   
Sorry, Shigeru... "Hey, stop picking on him!" I shout at the two. The blue haired guy blinks and bursts out laughing. I decide right then and there that I don't really like the bigger kids at the school.   
"He thinks he's gonna stop us!"   
"What, gonna use your little stuffed Pikachu on us?" the girl remarks snidely.   
"I-I-HEY! Give me back Pikachu!"   
~~~~~  
Oh, great. The bullies stole Sato-chan's stuffed Pikachu. And he, being Sato, is charging the boy with the blue hair, trying very ineffectually to land a punch on the older boy, who just yawns and blocks Sato's punches. "Here, Musashi!" the boy yells, throwing the Pikachu to the girl (Musashi). She giggles, and they begin to play keep-away. Hmmm...this would be a good time for me to make a ghostly entrance.   
I grab the stuffed toy from midair, and I know that all the bullies can see is the Pikachu floating in midair. I grin and let myself drift into focus. Both bullies yelp, and they take off in less time than it takes for me to say "Boo."   
I worry for a second that they'll be back with a teacher, and then I realize that they won't tell anyone because no one will believe them anyway and they'll just look stupid.   
"Heya," Sato's saying to the blond. "His name's Shigeru. He's nice. And I'm Sato."   
~~~~~  
I can't help but smile 'cause of the stunned look on Hiroshi's face. "Wow... um, my name's Hiroshi... I guess you all ready knew that..."   
I nod and Shigeru's just grinning.   
"Thanks... wow, what are you? I mean you just showed up..."   
I decide in the next ten minutes, that Hiroshi is pretty cool. I mean, he's nice to know and he's nice to Shigeru and that makes him great.   
He's kind of treating Shigeru like I did when I first met him... you know, cause he's so great and stuff. Sometimes I just don't know how to think right.   
With a smile, Shigeru hands me back my Pikachu and I smile. "Thanks."   
"Welcome, Sato."   
"So... wow... is it your first day here?"   
I nod. "Yep... Mama and I just moved in..."   
We go on and on, talking about where I like, where he lives, figuring out that we live a street away from each other...   
"Cool, cool! You have to come over... It'll be fun to play with you! Both of you. And maybe Kasumi'll be able to come out, too..."   
I don't think I've ever been so happy. I mean, I've never had so many friends in such a short amount of time. It's... really nice. I hope Mama's gonna see it the way that I do...   
I blink at the sound of that bully, Musashi's, voice. "There they are! Over there!"   
Shigeru has a big grin on his face as he fades out of existence... Hiroshi looks appropriately wowed. "Hiroshi, Satoshi, Musashi and Kojiro say that you started some sort of commotion."   
Hiroshi's got the most innocent expression plastered on his face. "What do you mean, Kujitaka-sensei?"   
You know, he really is going to be a great friend. Cause he has the teacher eating out of his hands...   
"But we saw-!"   
"No! This is enough. You're taking up my free time." The teacher turns to storm off.   
Kojiro gets big eyed and shoots a whiney glance at Musashi. "But! Kujitaka-!"   
"I said that's enough! Give the boy back his lunch money, I *know* this is what this is all about, and leave them both alone!"   
Musashi and Kojiro look defeated, but it's the sort of thing that swears there will be vengeance. Who cares? Shigeru can kick their butts.   
When they're gone and we're all away, I look at Shigeru and Hiroshi and start laughing. "That was great! This is the bestest first day of school ever!" But when there's a beginning, the rest only gets better, or so my Mama likes to say... and I'm really sure that this is going to turn out all storybook perfect.   
~~~~~  
  



	2. Some Dance to Remember

Disclaimer: We don't own Pokemon, Pikachu, or Monopoly. Neither of us sees dead people, but if you sue us, we'll pretend we do, and then plead insanity.   
  
Author's Notes:   
Dana: That's right! Lucia and I are back with the next installment of our story. Amazed? Impressed? Confused? Our plans are succeeding!   
  
Lucia: Mwahahah! Er...we were talking about 'those' plans, right?   
  
Dana: Um, yes, plans... *nervous giggle*   
  
Lucia: But anyway, we can blame most of this chapter on Dana, since she's the Hiro/Sato fan, and the rest on me, since I'm the one who wanted ...wait, don't want to give that bit away. ^_^   
  
Dana: *likes that secret too* *hums* And for the sake of keeping a bit of sanity (Gods know we lack enough of that ourselves), Chapter Two takes place eight years after Chapter One.   
  
Lucia: Sanity?   
  
Dana: Yeah, I know insane...I think I have *sanity*!   
  
Lucia: *giggling insanely* People...who don't need a mind...are the happiest people...   
  
Dana: *giggles* What she said! So, I guess the point of the matter, is please enjoy the chapter, and enjoy the story over all, and remember to give us feedback; I *know* where you live... *evil cackle*   
  
Lucia: Do you know where I live? I'm lost. Oh...right...the readers. Bye-bye people!   
  
Archiving: Nope, this is ours, and WE (not Lucia and I, I think I'm being imperial here) ARE MEAN! Archiving only on end of summer and Lucia's site. Okay, and fanfiction.net too. Cause I'm nice. Confuzzling sentences, ne?   
  
Feedback: Feed the kitties! And the authors too. ^^ Millions of authors die each year due to lack of feedback... Have a heart! Give some feedback!   
  
Warning: Shounen ai in this chapter! If you flame us, we will probably do something weird. After we die of laughter…  
~~~~~  
I hum as I help Satoshi-kun clean his room. To any bystander, it might look like stuff is just flying through the air, which I find to be a funny idea, for some reason. Satoshi-kun's grown up a lot. He's into sports and stuff, so there's a soccer gear sitting all over the place. It's hard to believe I've known him for eight years. And he's exactly the same as he always was.   
And here I am, about to hit what would be my eighteenth birthday if I was alive. Time goes by so fast!   
Satoshi's got his head under the bed and his butt sticking in the air, as he digs stuff out, tossing it haphazardly behind him.   
A knock comes from the door and Hiroshi bursts in, just as Sato tosses a pair of boxers from under his bed behind him. They land on Hiroshi's head and he turns bright red, peeling them off and dropping them on the floor. "Ano...Satoshi..." he says, and Sato pops out from under the bed, glomping Hiroshi.   
"Gomen, Hiro-chan!" he pipes. "What's up?!"   
I chuckle to myself, floating up to sit cross-legged in midair. Those two...it's so obvious (to me, at least) that they both have huge crushes on each other, but neither one will admit it to the other. I think it's kawaii.   
Although at times it can be frustrating, most of the time it's just funny.   
And I'm not saying anything! They have to figure it out for themselves.   
~~~~~  
I have to admit, I'm glad to see Hiroshi. Do I have a better friend in the world? Well, I guess he and Shigeru do tie for that position. And I think Kasumi would threaten me with something abjectly harmful if I left her out...   
I pull back from him with a smile, "So, what's up?"   
He shakes his head and blinks. "Oh," he smiles, he has a pretty smile, I wonder if he knows..., "just came over to ask you about, well, you know, the dance..." His voice trails off after that.   
I shrug and sit on the edge of my bed. "You know what I said about it before... I'm not sure."   
"Oh come on, you and me and Kasumi could go as friends." He looks up at Shigeru and smiles. "You can too, if you want. They don't say anything about not being able to bring along friends."   
Shigeru laughs softly. "I'm sure they'd worry if they knew there was a ghost floating about."   
I laugh too, "Like you are now?"   
He sticks his tongue out at us, and then Hiroshi glomps onto my arm, "Please, please, *please* Sato-chan!" I blush at that, him calling that always makes me blush, "It'll be fun! And it's the junior prom...we can't miss out on it!"   
I don't know if I can escape from this, and I shoot Shigeru a pleading look to which he shakes his head no in reply, and then I sigh, "There's gonna be another one next year..."   
"And you'll try and get out of it too..."   
"Hiro..."   
"Please..." he whispers, and I can't imagine why Shigeru has such an amused look on his face. I can feel Hiroshi's breath on my cheek, and I turn to him and our lips are just a breath apart. I flail back and fall off the bed.   
"Sato! You okay?"   
I nod and sit up. "Yeah... Hiro, please you can't be serious."   
He has his 'pouty cute you bet I'm serious' look on his face. I hate that look. It's gotten me into so much trouble over the years. "I can't dance."   
"I'm sure we can find someone to help with that." Hiroshi says with a smile and I finally sit back down on the bed. "Like who?"   
Hiroshi looks thoughtful, opens and closes his mouth a few times, and then shrugs, "I don't know."   
I sigh. But maybe I can get out of his yet... "Well..."   
Shigeru clears his throat. I blink and look up at him. "Huh? What is it, Geru?"   
"Well, I can dance..."   
I blink a couple more times and Hiroshi glomps onto my arm. "It's perfect! Please, Sato-chan, please! Geru can help you learn and we'd have so much fun, please?"   
I melt and smile. "Sure." I really turn to mush when he wants his way...   
~~~~~  
I'm inwardly giggling like a six-year-old. I can't believe they don't see this!   
"Sure, I can teach you to dance, Satoshi-kun. It's not that hard. And I think Kasumi knows how to dance pretty well, so if you still need help, she'll be at the dance, too." I wonder if I can ask her to leave Satoshi and Hiroshi alone to spend some "quality time" together.   
I must have a big, goofy grin on my face, because Satoshi asks, "Shigeru...what are you thinking? Anytime you have that look on your face, you're plotting."   
I will an angel's halo into existence above me. "Who? Me? I'm just thinking about the dance."   
"Oh, really?" Satoshi says.   
"Really!" I reply, trying to sound as sincere as possible. He still looks like he doesn't believe me, but he doesn't push me any further.   
"Well, Satoshi, why don't you put some music on?" I ask. "Hiroshi? Do you need dance lessons, too?"   
~~~~~  
I know he's up to something. Pushing the matter, though, isn't going to help me in the matter. I shoot one glance back at Hiroshi, who's nodding, "I could always use a bit of a refresher course..."   
Dancing with Hiroshi... I wonder if he...   
I'm trying my best to keep any big, stupid grins off my face, unlike a certain ghost who will go unnamed had on but a moment ago, as I turn on my radio. "Are we looking for anything in particular?"   
"Um, well, you need slow music to slow dance, right?" Shigeru asks in a tone suited more to a five year old.   
"Um," I blush and turn the radio, trying to find a station for just that, "I guess you're right."   
I turn back to them. Shigeru's smiling angelically and Hiroshi's staring off into the space around my lamp. "So..."   
"So..."   
"Come on off you're high horse, Shigeru," I beckon to him with a motion of my finger, "I don't want to stop on Hiroshi's feet or anything like that."   
Hiroshi's gaze snaps back to me, and I figure out what I just said, "I mean, you do want to, don't you?"   
He blinks then smiles and nods, "Of course I do, Sato-chan."   
There's that stupid grin I was trying to fight off... I think it got the better of me. "So, Shigeru..."   
~~~~~  
I'm doing my best not to get that big, "I'm plotting something and everything's going my way" grin on my face again. "All right," I say. "Now, Hiroshi-kun, put your arms around Satoshi's waist...and Sato, your arms go around Hiroshi's shoulders..." Here comes that grin again. I turn away to hide it, floating down to turn the volume up on the CD player. "Now just sway together," I say, my back still turned to them. Hmmm...I bet they're not paying much attention to me anymore, so they might not notice the goofy grin on my face.   
...Yup, I was right. I resume my sitting position in mid-air. Awww...isn't that cute?   
"Um...Geru?" Satoshi says after a moment. "My hands are getting tired."   
My grin gets bigger. "So just pull him closer and wrap your arms around him."   
~~~~~  
Oh. That sounds simple. Why didn't I think about that?   
This is nice, though. I do as Shigeru's said, just pulling him closer and wrapping my arms around him. And it feels nice, very nice.   
I mean, it's obvious that I like him. And little things like this, can't help but make me believe that he likes me too. So it's all good, right? Wrong.   
Because there's a chance that he's just acting like a friend. And that that's the only way that he sees me...   
Wouldn't it be too good to be true?   
But if it's possible...oh come on, I don't have that sort of luck at all.   
I think it would be... it really is too good to be true...so I'll just take what I have. And right now, I never imagined something like this would happen. And I'm afraid something is going to ruin it...   
"Are we doing this right?" I ask softly.   
Hiroshi's face is actually just so close... I need to get these thoughts out of my head, don't I? Where are they supposed to go, though...?   
~~~~~  
"'Scuse me for a moment," I say, sneaking towards the door. "I'm hungry going for some food." Hopefully it won't occur to them that, while I can eat, I don't get hungry. I think they're too wrapped up in each other to really think about what I've said. I float down and slip out of the room. I really do go get a snack- even if I don't get hungry, I miss eating sometimes. But I do it fast- don't want to miss anything!   
I slip back upstairs and crack the door to peek in on them.   
~~~~~  
If I thought it was too good to be true, just a moment ago...then it really is beyond just *good* right now. "Hiroshi..."   
"Satoshi..."   
He closes his eyes, and leans closer. Oh god, he's going to kiss me, he's going to kiss me, he's going to...   
That line of thought is completely and thoroughly derailed as the phone begins to ring, and I blink as Hiroshi abruptly jerks back. "Huh?"   
"Satoshi," Mom calls from downstairs, and I swear I just heard muffled cursing from the door, "there's a phone-call for you!"   
I blink and stammer and then pull away from Hiroshi, who sits down on the edge of my bed. Dazed, I turn down the music and then pick up my phone. "Hello?"   
Why did that have to happen...we were so close...   
~~~~~  
"Oh, hi, Kasumi," Satoshi says as I mentally practice my naughty   
vocabulary...in five different languages. I'm going to have to yell at Kasumi later. "Yeah, I'm going," Satoshi nods, winding the phone cord around his finger. "Yeah, he convinced me. OK, I'll talk to you later."   
He hangs up the phone and it immediately rings again. Stupid phone...as soon as Satoshi gets off the phone, I'm taking all of them off the hook.   
His face lights up. "Hi! You're coming home? Great, I haven't seen you in _ages_!" He must be talking to his sister, the one who was always off at boarding school when he was younger and is in college now.   
"Cool, maybe you can come to the dance with us! Yeah, Hiroshi and Kasumi- they're the one's I'm always talking about. You need to meet them, they're great! ... Well, you always come and leave right away, and it seems you always miss them...yeah, Geru's still here." He hangs up- finally. I guess I should go back in now, before they realize I'm missing.   
~~~~~  
With a smile I turn to Hiroshi and Shigeru. Oh, didn't notice he'd gotten back... "Guess what!"   
Hiroshi looks to Shigeru who has s similar look, "Don't tell me, your sister is coming for a visit?"   
I nod, "Yeah, I guess you noticed. It really has been so long...this is the perfect time for her to visit, and it'll be perfect!"   
With a spin, I sit down on the bed next to Hiroshi. He laughs softly and shakes his head. "Well, it would be nice to meet her."   
"Yeah, I know you'll all like her!"   
"Well, I know I'll always like you better, so I hope you don't mind."   
My tongue's all tied up and Shigeru's just got that *look* again... 'oh stop looking that way!' I mouth to him.   
He does a little shrug. "So, have you gotten it down? Or do we need more practicing?"   
I blush for a moment before I realize he means dancing. "Well, I'm sure that we'll need to practice more so we don't make fools of ourselves, right Hiro?"   
He smiles and nods. "I think so too."   
Everything is turning out just perfectly. This is so like...good...like... heaven or something... Yeah, I know, I'm really eloquent as Shigeru would put it. But I don't really care...   
~~~~~  
"I look-"   
"Great," I interrupt Satoshi.   
"-stupid," he finished.   
"No, you don't," I reply. Satoshi's sister nods her agreement, moving to fix his collar.   
"You're so grown-up!" she squeals.   
"Nanami," he whines, batting her hand away.   
I cough. "Don't worry...certain people you have a crush on will think you look absolutely adorable."   
He chuckles nervously. "I don't have a crush on Kasumi," he says.   
I just smile sweetly at him.   
"OK, let's go," Nanami says. She's driving and we're picking up Hiroshi on the way. Kasumi has her own ride there.   
"I'll meet you there," I say, since I promised Kasumi I'd let her know how she looks. I float through the wall and then through the wall of Kasumi's house that leads to her hallway.   
I knock on her door. "Come in!" she pipes. "So, from a guys' perspective, do I look OK?"   
Wow, is the only word that comes to mind. She has on a white dress with gold trimmings, making her look pure and regal at the same time. The gold swirls up from the hem of the dress, looking like a dancing flame, and setting off some gold highlights in her red hair, which she has down and curled slightly at the end. Blue eyeshadow and a necklace with an aquamarine butterfly pendant set off her eyes.   
"Wow," I say after a moment. "If I was alive, I'd definitely want to date you."   
"So I look OK?" she says. Man, girls are so nervous about these things. On second thought, Satoshi was as well.   
"Gorgeous," I reply, offering my arm and escorting her to the end of the hall, before I blink out of sight so her parents won't see me and follow her to her car.   
~~~~~  
I don't believe Shigeru. I know I look stupid, and there's nothing that he or anyone else can say to change my mind.   
That, and Nanami looks far too amused by the entire thing for my liking. "Why do you look so smug?" I ask my sister as she unlocks the door to her car. She looks up at me innocently, and smiles.   
"Who, me? I'm not smug at all."   
Yeah, like I'm gonna believe that look. I perfected it on our mother over the years...   
"You're up to something, too, aren't you? Just like Shigeru..."   
She laughs and unlocks the passenger side door. "You're so paranoid."   
I get in, crossing my arms on my chest as I do. "Well excuse me for breathing."   
"You're excused," she says as she gets in, "now buckle up and tell me how to get to Hiroshi's house."   
"Hiroshi..." I sigh happily. I wonder how he's going to look. Better than I do in this stupid suit, that's for sure. This is going to be such a perfect night... With another sigh, I buckle up and Nanami starts up the car. "You're gonna like him so much. He's the greatest."   
She chuckles lightly. "We'll see. You sure seem to like him."   
I am not going to blush in front of my sister when she insinuates things! I look away, blushing where she can't see the reaction. "Well, he's a great friend. Him and Shigeru and Kasumi are the best ones I've ever had..."   
She stops at the corner and her hand is light on my shoulder. "I'm glad you like it here. I'm glad you and Mom finally found a place..."   
I look back at her, smiling. "It was bound to happen."   
She smiles too. "I know. Now, where are we going?"   
"Oh, turn here. Then take the first right. He's the third house down on the left."   
She smiles and we move on. Tonight is going to be absolutely perfect. She pulls up in front of Hiroshi's house and taps my arm. "Huh?"   
She shakes her head with a grin. "You were just staring off into space. You're acting like this is a date or something, dear little brother of mine."   
I blush and unbuckle my seat belt to get out of the car. "It's not a date!" I say, turning and stomping up towards the house. But... that would be nice if it could be possible...   
I knock at the door and Hiroshi's mother answers. She smiles and ushers me in, complimenting me on how nice I look this evening. "It's nothing..." I murmur, looking for Hiroshi.   
"Oh, he'll be down in a moment." She tells me and goes off.   
I wonder if I look all right... I hope I look all right... I wonder if Hiroshi will think I look all right... I... "Sato-chan?"   
I blink and look up at him. "Wow."   
He smiles and takes the last few steps down the stairs. "Thanks... I guess I look OK?"   
I nod, silent. OK is definitely not the word that I would use, but it'll work. "Shall we be going?" he asks with that melt-worthy smile of his.   
"Oh yes, the night is young, as they say..."   
He giggles, and we're about to leave when his mother shows up with a camera in hand. Oh God not this... "Oh Hiroshi, you have to let me take a picture... I haven't seen you this dressed up in forever."   
He blushes and nods and we stand there at the foot of the stairs as she takes several pictures. Finally, Hiroshi gives in, "Mom, we're going to be late..."   
"Oh!" She starts to shoo us out the door. "Go on, go on, and have fun!"   
I'm sure we will...   
~~~~~  
Kasumi and I seem to have beaten Satoshi and company. I don't see them here, yet, anyway. "I wonder where they are," I announce in Kasumi's ear, still remaining invisible. She jumps a little. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you."   
She relaxes a little. "It's OK," she whispers out of the corner of her mouth. "So what does Satoshi's sister look like?"   
I think. "Well, she has black hair, like him, and she's really pretty. Tonight she's wearing a gold dress with black butterflies on it and a dark gold poofy skirt. It's really pretty."   
Kasumi sighs. "She sounds really pretty."   
"Don't worry, you are too." Poor Kasumi...she needs the encouragement. She's kind of made fun of for being a tomboy, and I think it really hurts her feelings more than they let on.   
"Oh, look! They're here!" I can see them, from my floating position above the crowd, but Kasumi can't.   
"Where?" she asks.   
"Over there," I point, and we start weaving through the crowd. "We have to find some excuse to squirrel Nanami off, though, so Satoshi and Hiroshi can have some alone time."   
Kasumi giggles. "I'm two steps ahead of you. I'll just ask her to help me with my make-up. You know, girl time?"   
"Sounds good," I agree. "And you can nab me as your male consultant again."   
"Sure, that sounds...oh my." Her eyes have gone really wide. "Is that Nanami?"   
~~~~~  
We've woven our way through the crowd, trying to search out Kasumi or Shigeru. Hiroshi finds Kasumi first, who's staring in something close to awe. "Kasumi, Shigeru!" I wave with a smile.   
Kasumi snaps out of it and smiles and waves back, and Shigeru has a smug look on his face from where he floats.   
Well, I guess I too would be smug if I could float. But that aside, "Kasumi, I'd like you to meet Nanami. Nanami, this is one of my best friends, Kasumi."   
Kasumi has an almost shy smile on her lips- that's completely out of character for her, isn't it?   
"It's a pleasure to meet you. I- I've heard so much about you."   
Nanami smiles and nods slightly, "Satoshi's told me so much about you, too, Kasumi."   
I blink and Kasumi twirls a bit of her hair with a finger, "Do you think you could...you know...help me with my make-up? It's something these boys just wouldn't be able to understand..."   
She smiles, "Oh believe me, I understand completely." My sister gives me a knowing look, she had better not bring up that time when I was three and she played dress up with me...   
"Have fun you two." Shigeru says and then looks back at Hiroshi and I, crossing his arms over his chest. I'm so glad everyone's busy enough *not* to notice us. "Wow, I must admit, I think you look perfect together."   
I blush and Hiroshi clears his throat. "Well?" Shigeru pipes up with a glint in his eyes. I turn to face Hiroshi, smiling unsteadily. "Well..."   
"Want to dance?" he asks suddenly. I nod mutely. We're going to be stared at. And you know what? I don't care at all...   
I give Shigeru a smile before Hiroshi drags me off towards the dance floor.   
~~~~~  
Yes, score one for the ghost! They're so adorable! I'm giggling madly to myself, now, as I wander off to see what Kasumi and Nanami are actually up to. It looked like love at first sight to me, and although the thought hadn't occurred to me beforehand, I now realize they would make a cute couple.   
I poke my head into the bathroom. Kasumi and Nanami are whispering to each other and giggling, and then I see Nanami offer Kasumi her hand. Kasumi blushes and takes it, and Nanami leads her out of the bathroom and on to the opposite end of the floor as Satoshi and Hiroshi, escaping their notice.   
Actually, I think an earthquake would escape their notice at this point. Satoshi's got his arms wrapped around Hiroshi's shoulders, and the smaller boy has his arms around Satoshi's waist and his face buried in his shirt. Awwww...it's so obvious to everyone at this point how much they like each other, but nothing else is going to happen until they admit their feelings. Darn it! And there's nothing I can do about that.   
Although just watching them like this turns me into a pile of goo.   
But still, I wish they weren't both so shy/stubborn. They probably both think that this is a "friendly" dance.   
Well, maybe there is something I can do. I take off for the bathrooms, where I form myself to as solid as I get, complete with formal gear. I slip back out, before requesting the sappiest song I can think of, and one that's a favorite love song for both of the boys. Funny that they've never compared notes- I don't think either of them knows that the other loves this song so much.   
~~~~~  
That's it, I have to be dead and this *has* to be heaven. Because I've never been as happy as I am right now...and that's with Hiroshi in my arms, this way...   
I need to thank Shigeru for the dance lessons...I think they're helping...   
But...Hiroshi and I...we're just friends...just friends...I shouldn't be thinking things this way through. But...   
That's when I hear the sound of one of my favorite songs. Why is that playing? I open my eyes, I hadn't even noticed they were closed, glancing down at Hiroshi who slowly looks up at me.   
"Hiroshi..." I whisper under the music. I didn't notice I'd spoken, until he replied.   
"Satoshi..."   
It's happening all over again. His lips are so close, and I swear that this has been set up...just so that...   
"You know..." I murmur. "This is one of my favorite songs..."   
He blinks cutely. "Really? It's mine too... How long have we known each other?"   
"Eight years now..."   
Eight perfect years...   
"Mmm...I feel like there's still so much that I don't know about you, Sato-chan..."   
"I...maybe we need to change it. I would like to get to know you better, too..." Because he's right...he's such a mystery to me... My throat suddenly feels dry and I swallow the lump that's formed. "I think...there's a lot that I wish I could tell you, Hiroshi..."   
He blinks, then smiles. "There's a lot that I've been holding out on you about, too." He says softly, before cushioning his face against my shoulder.   
"I- Hiroshi, can I be blunt?" I settle on that in the end, because it seems to be the best thing that I can do. He murmurs a yes in reply, and I close my eyes. Just swaying, that's what this feels like.   
And it's so very nice...   
Now, just what to say? I said blunt. So the only thing that's going to work is the truth. I can do this. I know I can... "I think I love you, Hiroshi...and I have for a long time..."   
"Satoshi..." His voice is just so very calm, that it scares me so very much.   
I open my eyes slowly, and I swear it's like the rest of the world has just stopped. I'm terrified of what he's going to say...   
So when he smiles and presses up on his tiptoes, getting a better hold on me with his arms shifting around me as he does, and then I feel his lips pressed against mine, and my eyes just sort of close on reflex...   
It's sort of slow and easy, I mean, I've never kissed anyone before...not like this... But it's something that I hope we have chances to make up and refine... The world really has stopped moving and existing, except for him. Just us and the music...   
So when I feel him pull away, it's sort of a shock. "Hiroshi...?" I blink and look down at him. He's just smiling up at me, completely angelic.   
"I love you too, Satoshi. I...I think we need to have deep talks like this more often..."   
I have to smile at that. "Only if you want to."   
"Believe me, it makes me happy."   
So I smile and just kiss him again. And this time...if I thought the first was amazing...well, this is just better.   
~~~~~  
Lucia: *smile* Don't worry, the third and final part is finished, and it will be posted as soon as Dana htmls it. ^_^  



	3. Some Dance to Forget

From Far Away  
Chapter Three  
By dana-chan and Lucia  
  
Disclaimer: We don't own Pokemon, Pikachu, or Monopoly. Neither of us sees dead  
people, but if you sue us, we'll pretend we do, and then plead insanity.  
Author's Notes:  
  
Lucia: Lookie! The third part! And I confess, the ending is entirely my fault.  
  
Dana: Which wasn't a bad thing, because I loved it to bits. We hope *you* love  
it bits as well! Don't we?  
  
Lucia: *looks around darkly* Noooo...must torture readers...evil...*blinks  
nervously* Um, right, right!  
  
Dana: *giggles* Yes, what she said. One thing to note in this chapter, though,  
is the change of POV... It's Shigeru/Satoshi for the first part, then changes to  
Hiroshi/Satoshi, and ends in Shigeru's POV... Could be confusing so I wanted to  
point it out. ^^  
  
Lucia: *muttering darkly, ignores Dana* Must...scare..readers...  
  
Dana: Ahehhhheh... *giggles nervously* Yes, what she said again. Please, enjoy  
the fic. ^^  
  
Lucia: *looks up absently from where she's mixing some dangerous-looking  
chemicals, waves, and goes back to...whatever she's doing*  
  
Dana: *waves* Bye bye! ^_^  
  
Archiving: Nope, this is ours, and WE (not Lucia and I, I think I'm being  
imperial here) ARE MEAN! Archiving only on end of summer and Lucia's site.  
Okay, and fanfiction.net too. Cause I'm nice. Confuzzling sentences, ne?  
  
Feedback: Feed the kitties! And the authors too. ^^ Millions of authors die each  
year due to lack of feedback... Have a heart! Give some feedback!  
~~~~~  
I grin, sipping some coffee out of a cup. If I wasn't already dead, I'd probably  
think this stuff was trying to kill me, but since I am, and I feel like having a  
coffee buzz...ever seen a hyper ghost? I tend to literally bounce off the walls  
after having coffee.  
  
Satoshi's mother passed on a year ago, leaving the big, old house to Satoshi and  
Nanami. And since it's big...Both happy couples of Satoshi and Hiroshi and  
Nanami and Kasumi live here, now. And I'm one happy ghost, since I have people  
living in my house who not only don't run off screaming, but actually count me  
as their friend.  
  
Hiroshi stumbles downstairs, trying to get his shirt on frontwards at the same  
time. He leaves for work at nine.  
  
Nanami is our homemaker; she stays around with me and cooks and cleans while the  
others go off to their jobs in the day- Hiroshi and Satoshi at a toy company,  
and Kasumi as a school teacher.  
  
"Nnngh," he grunts at Satoshi, who already looks entirely too cheerful.  
  
"Good morning, love," Satoshi says as Hiroshi sits down across from him. Nanami  
hands him a huge plate of food, and Hiro quickly wakes up and begins to down it.  
  
"Mmmph!" Hiroshi says after a minute, and Sato's grinning at him. I have a  
sneaking suspicion they're playing footsie under the table. Nanami rolls her  
eyes at me before retreating back into the kitchen.  
  
"Know what today is?" Sato questions me.  
  
"Nooo..." I say, trying to remember the date.  
  
"It's Hiroshi and my anniversary. We're going on vacation to celebrate. Leaving  
tonight and getting back Sunday morning."  
  
Oh, yeah, it's Friday.  
  
"OK," I say, absently. "Maybe I'll go out or something so Nanami and Kasumi can  
have the house to themselves."   
~~~~~  
"That might be a good idea, they deserve to have some time alone, too." I poke  
at my food before taking a bite, toying with the piece before actually eating.  
"Where do you plan on going, then?"  
  
Shigeru makes a non-committal noise.  
  
I wish he were solid, at least then I'd kick him.  
  
"Oh come on, that's no answer at all." I say with a mock glare. "At the least,  
aren't you going to miss us?"  
  
He blinks innocently at me. "Well I don't think you'd find me useful in the  
situation so I guess I'm going to have to miss you."  
  
Hiroshi makes a weak choking noise and Shigeru pats him on the back to clear  
that up. My love's not the only one who's blushing...  
  
"Anyway, what *do* you plan to do while we're gone? You never answered that,  
Shigeru!" That, and I know we have to get to work soon. At least Hiroshi and I  
finished packing most of what we need last night...all we have left is a few  
pieces of last minute stuff...  
  
This is going to be a perfect weekend. Eh, I hope it's one, that is.  
~~~~~  
I guess I shouldn't tell them that I'll probably be running back and forth  
between spying on them and spying on Nanami and Kasumi.  
  
"Um...heh heh," I laugh nervously, trying to come up with something. "I heard  
there was a musical playing in Tamamushi. Maybe I'll go see it and do some  
shopping there."  
  
Satoshi gives me an odd look.  
  
"Well, as much as a ghost can shop," I amend. "I _do_ like looking at stuff. And  
if I see something I really like, I can form solid and buy it."  
  
"And where do you get money?" Hiroshi says, curious.  
  
"I have my sources," I reply, grinning.  
  
Satoshi and Hiroshi apparently decide to stare romantically into each other's  
eyes while they finish breakfast, and I think they're playing footsie again. But  
it's hard to tell. I rolling my eyes- they're still like a couple of teenagers-  
I take my coffee mug into the kitchen.  
~~~~~  
I sort of lose myself in Hiroshi's eyes, and I like where I find myself. Yes,  
this is going to be a perfect weekend. One of the better ones in our  
relationship, I must admit.  
  
All right, so if I'm about to get sappy, every day with him is better than the  
one before.  
  
I love him so very much. Anyway, it's fun playing with him this way.  
  
"We're gonna have such a fun weekend, aren't we Hiro-chan?"  
  
He nods and sips at his orange juice. "The best vacation that we've had in  
forever. *Plus* it's our anniversary..." He smiles at me in that sort of knowing  
way. Of yes, this is going to be a wonderful weekend.  
  
I sigh and then look at the clock on the wall. "Are you finished? We need to go  
soon..."  
  
I look back and he crinkles his nose at me. "Why do we have to work today?"  
  
"Because it's our responsibility..."  
  
He hmphs and sighs. "It's not fair."  
  
"Oh, I'll make it up to you..."  
  
I *love* it when he blushes...  
~~~~~  
I grin, watching from the kitchen. Sap alert! Those two are too sweet sometimes.  
I mean, they're cavity inducing.  
  
As opposed to Nanami and Kasumi, who are just silly. I missed them, though,  
since Kasumi had to leave earlier.  
  
Maybe I will go see that musical tonight. It was supposed to be good, and they  
do need some time alone without a voyeuristic ghost (but you didn't hear that  
from me!).  
  
"Let's go," I hear Satoshi say, and the sound of chairs scraping the floor came  
from the dining room.  
  
"I'll come with you," I say, floating in. "I'm kind of bored."  
  
"Being a ghost must be," Hiroshi agrees. "Not a whole lot to do, huh?"  
  
No, not really. I kind of miss matchmaking, like I used to do when I was  
younger, but everyone who knows about me already has someone.  
  
We're out the door now- the two walk to work since it's so close. They're  
crossing the street when I see a car turn the corner sharply and come barreling  
towards the two in a zig-zag pattern.  
  
"Look out!" I yelp, forming my hands solid enough to push them out of the way.  
  
They both look dazed for a minute, before Satoshi shakes his head. "Geru? Geru,  
are you OK?" He hasn't called me Geru in awhile. I appear, floating in midair.  
"Don't worry, I'm already dead, remember?"  
  
He breathes a sigh of relief. "Yeah, but...you never know, it could still hurt  
you..."  
~~~~~  
"But... I mean... are you sure you're okay?"  
  
Shigeru nods and waves his hand dismissively. "Of course I am! Stop worrying  
about me, Satoshi!"  
  
"But..."  
  
"I said don't!"  
  
"Oh all right..."  
  
I sigh. So I don't believe him. I put my hand on Hiroshi's shoulder. "Are you  
okay?"  
  
He smiles and nods. That was a brush with death that I didn't expect... not that  
you ever expect these things to happen... You know one thing I've never asked  
Shigeru? Even though I've known him two-thirds of my life? How he died...  
  
"Think we can go to work?" Hiroshi asks.  
  
I don't know what to say...so I nod.  
  
He smiles shakily. "Okay then, on we go."  
  
He takes my hand it's sort of nice after that. At least I'm not worrying  
anymore. But that car could have *killed* us...and now it's no where in sight...  
  
Hiroshi kisses me outside our place of work, distracting me very well.  
"Sato-chan, stop worrying so much. You're all right, I'm all right, Shigeru's  
all right, we're all all right..."  
  
This is going to be a good day, though, and the weekend is going to be even  
better. So even if I'm a little shaky... "I love you, Hiro-chan."  
  
He smiles and gets on his tip-toes again to kiss me. He's still shorter than me  
by a while... "Love you too."  
  
He smiles and holds my hand still. Yes, everything is still all right...  
~~~~~  
I snicker. One fine day in spring...  
  
"Have fun at work, you two!" I yell, floating off to just wander around and  
window shop or whatnot.  
  
Several hours later, when I finally return home, I'm greeted by flying objects.  
Satoshi and Hiroshi are packing for their trip, and I'm guessing one or both of  
them can't find something (big surprise there) and their solution is to just  
throw everything around, hoping the missing object will surface.  
  
I laugh, because I can hear Kasumi in there, yelling at them for not keeping  
their things neater, and it's a miracle they don't lose more stuff to their  
room, like job documents, the job itself, blah blah blah.  
  
"Welcome to Chaos Hotel," Nanami says from the couch where she's watching TV.  
"Would you like a normal room or a suite?"  
  
I grin at her. "They're all the sweetness I need," nodding towards Hiroshi and  
Satoshi's room. However, I hope they finish packing soon...  
~~~~~  
I squeak, dashing out the door with Hiroshi right behind me. Oh dear, I think  
Kasumi's mad. Oh well, she'll have cooled down by the time we get home. I pop  
the trunk and Hiro-chan and I put our stuff in.  
  
"Yay! We're off!" I say delightedly as I hop into the car and start the engine.  
Hiroshi leans back in his seat and sighs.  
  
"So, Sato-chan, you never did tell me where we were going."  
  
"Uh-uh," I reply. "That's a surprise."  
  
Hiro giggles. "OK, Sato. Whatever you want."  
  
We're out of Masara now and onto the freeway, and I can devote one hand to  
reaching over and pulling Hiroshi to lean against me. He sighs and snuggles  
against me. He's such a snuggler, my Hiro-chan.  
  
"Have I told you I love you today?" I ask, my eyes flickering down briefly to  
his golden hair.  
  
"Yes, but tell me again," he says.  
  
"I love you, Hiro-chan."  
~~~~~  
(Hiroshi)  
  
I love it when he says that. I don't think my darling Satoshi has any idea just  
how much of an impact his words have on me. Even little things like that...  
  
I really wish he'd let me know what the surprise is, though. He can be stubborn  
about these things. It's sort of tradition on our anniversaries, if anything.  
Ever since the first...  
  
But I love him that much more...just because of the little things he *does* to  
show me how much he loves me.  
  
I snuggle closer, being careful not to jar anything. We've already had one brush  
with death today, I don't need to go and repeat history.  
  
I close my eyes, though, because it's nice just snuggling like this. It'll be  
better when we're not in a car, and a room of our own...but I'll just have to  
wait for that, now won't I?  
  
I haven't said anything in awhile, though, so I turn and kiss his shoulder- just  
because it's there. "You're really sneaky about your surprises, Sato-chan. Sure  
you can't share with me?"  
  
He chuckles. "I'm very sure."  
  
"Oh pllllease, Sato-chan, please, please, pleaseee?" I kiss his cheek. "Please?"  
  
"Ehhh... Hiro, not while I'm driving, please..."  
  
I pout and sigh, kissing his cheek. "Oh all right if you say so..."  
~~~~~  
Hiroshi can be damned distracting sometimes, but there are better places to  
carry on these activities than the backseat of a car on the side of a road.  
  
Better places like where I'm taking him. I hope he'll like it- I think he will,  
I hope he will.  
  
I turn the CD player on, with the volume down to low, and my love song anthology  
in the player. "They're playing our song," Hiroshi whispers drowsily.  
  
"Yeah," I agree simply.  
  
We drive like that for an hour, with the music on low and Hiro-chan snuggled up  
against me. I can see our destination up ahead, as I take the off-ramp and  
travel through the little town and out to the countryside.  
  
"Here, Hiro-chan," I say, nudging him as we pull up at the small woodland type  
resort, complete with rustic cabins. I haul the stuff from the trunk, letting us  
into the cabin I've rented.  
~~~~~  
Sato-chan's putting away our stuff as I crash on the couch. It's not that he  
didn't try to stop me. I'm just so tired and that was such a long ride...  
  
"Hiroshi?"  
  
"Mmm?" I murmur, rolling over. I feel a hand on my shoulder. "Love, I got  
everything inside. Want to come to be with me?"  
  
"Mmm...I don't want to move..."  
  
"Hiro-chaaannn." He should know not to mess with the master. I have that whine  
down completely...  
  
"Sato..." I throw my arm over his shoulder and pull him close, "I like it here  
don't make me move..."  
  
"Hiro-chan..." he whispers faintly.  
  
I kiss his cheek. "Please?"  
  
"I guess I'll have to get my way at least once in my life..." he murmurs then I  
feel like I'm floating. Oh, I guess that's because he picked me up...  
  
"Satoshi!" I giggle, spinning like I am.  
  
"Hiroshi, stop squirming!" But he's laughing too so I know he's not serious.  
  
But then it all abruptly drops away and I'm lying on the bed. It's nice and soft  
and I don't want to move. Satoshi's suddenly a pleasant weight and warmth...  
"Hiro-chan..." he whispers before kissing me. I wrap my arms up around him,  
kissing him back, "I love you..."  
  
I open my eyes for a moment, smiling sleepily at him. "Love you too, Satoshi.  
Happy anniversary..."  
  
He smiles and kisses me again. "Happy anniversary, Hiro-chan..."  
  
Of course, I don't think I decided I wanted to sleep. It just sort of  
happened...  
~~~~~  
Aw...nuts, he's asleep. Little brat. You're not supposed to fall asleep on your  
anniversary vacation. Although I guess I am a little tired. It was a pretty long  
drive for me.  
  
I poke Hiroshi experimentally. No response. I sigh. When Hiroshi crashes, he  
crashes, and he won't wake up if a marching band walks by or an earthquake  
occurs.  
  
Well, nuts. I guess I should get some rest then, but first I need a snack. I dig  
in one of the bags I brought with me, and pull out a cooler and some other food.  
I take it to the kitchen, leaving the food on the counter and emptying the  
cooler into the fridge and putting the icepacks in the freezer.  
  
I quickly boil some water and make myself a cup of tea, and fix myself some  
crackers and cheese to go with it. After putting the cheese back in the 'fridge,  
I join Hiroshi in the bedroom. Although unlike him, I choose to at least change  
into my pajamas before lying down on the bed and pulling him close to me. And,  
of course, I fall asleep...  
~~~~~  
I feel my Satoshi's arms around me when I wake in the morning. Turning over, I  
find him sleeping beside me. Just the way it's supposed to be...  
  
At least today I'll be able to figure out what he has planned for our  
anniversary... So I lean close and kiss him, trying to wake him. "Sato-chan,  
wakey-wakey." But there's no response. I shake him a little, annoyed at his lack  
of conscious state.  
  
"Sato-chan!"  
  
Nothing.  
  
With a sigh, I roll him over and straddle his waist, leaning down and kissing  
him again. He mutters something, I think I'm getting a reaction! "Sato-chan..."  
I kiss him again and then when he's blinking up at me I start tickling his  
sides. Within five minutes we're a pair of very awake, yet out of breath, guys  
tangled up in sheets...  
  
"So, Satoshi," I'm trying to worm my way out of this mess I've gotten myself  
into, kissing his cheek since I happen to find it available, "what are we going  
to do today?"  
~~~~~  
I blink at him innocently. "Do? What do you think we should do?" He glares at  
me, and I laugh. "Well, we have a beautiful cabin out in the middle of the  
woods. There are lots of things to do. Just enjoy the scenery." I point.  
"There's a nice hammock outside if we wanna snuggle. And I have dinner  
reservations in town for tonight. And it'll be really special, but you have to  
wait 'till later, OK?"  
  
Hiroshi grins. "You like secrets, don't you?"  
  
I just smile sweetly at him, and then I yelp as his hands make contact with my  
ribs again. I shriek like a girl and try to get away from him. "You're evil, you  
know that, Sato?"  
  
I'm giggling to hard to make a reply other than "W-w-who's *gasp* evil *choke*?"  
  
He gives me an innocent expression, and I seize the slight opportunity to roll  
over, so now I'm the one sitting on top of him. I do have a size advantage- he's  
trying to get me off unsuccessfully. "Who's the man?" I ask, grinning at him and  
pinning his hands above his head.  
~~~~~  
I glare at him, even as I squirm and try and break his hold. "I am not going to  
say that! You can not make me say that!"  
  
He just smirks at me from his superior position. "It's not that hard, Hiro-chan.  
You can say it."  
  
I can't help but blush. "No, no, no! I am not going to...nooo! Satoshi, don't  
lick my neck!"  
  
But he does again, leaning down to get a good angle, and I writhe about, trying  
to free myself from the slimy assault. "Satoshi, no- no!"  
  
I start laughing and I can't help myself. But Satoshi's not giving up. Can he  
ever be *stubborn*! "All right, all right," I gasp as I try and gulp down  
breaths of fresh air, "you're the man, are you *happy*?!"  
  
He smiles and leans down again, kissing me and letting go of my hands. "I am,  
very much so, my love."  
  
I smile and glomp onto him, hard enough that we end up rolling off the bed. That  
sends us into another spasm of laughter and giggles.  
  
"So," It's sort of strange that we're snuggling on the floor of the bedroom now,  
but it can't be helped, "can you want until later?" he asks.  
  
I nod. "I can, Sato-chan, I can. But there's still something I want to do..." I  
smile sweetly and he lifts an eyebrow.  
  
"Oh? And that is?"  
  
"Eat breakfast. I'm starving. And it's early enough that we can still watch  
cartoons!"  
  
He laughs softly. "Is that really what you want to do, Hiro?"  
  
I nod and pout. "I love snuggling with you and watching TV. I know it's not that  
romantic..."  
  
He shakes his head and pulls me closer to kiss me, "Anything is romantic,  
Hiroshi, when I'm with you."  
  
I blush again. "Even when we had to clean the rain gutter together that one  
time?"  
  
He laughs and snuggles closer, and he says that I'm a snuggler, "Yes, even when  
we had to clean the gutter together."  
  
I don't quite know what to say. So... "I love you." I tell him softly. That will  
just have to do.  
~~~~~  
I'm blushing. Silly. I know he loves me, but every time he says so, I can't help  
but flush. I think he sometimes does it just to see me turn red. "You're cute  
when you blush," he teases me.  
  
"I love you too," I reply, pulling him closer. (Not that that's technically  
possible...)  
  
"Do you want to go for a walk in the woods when we get done watching..." I look.  
"Pokemon? You know, we should be too old to watch this."  
  
Hiroshi holds up his shoe. "Size seven..."  
  
I snicker. "Shoe size aside, Hiro-kun."  
  
"Who cares?" Hiro replies. "But the walk sounds nice. It seems to be a pretty  
area. Lots of flowers."  
~~~~~  
"Then that's what we can do," My Sato says as he feathers a hand through my hair  
and we get comfortable watching Pokemon.  
  
It's an old episode...I think we've both seen it half a million times before.  
Don't you love re-runs? "Mm, Sato?" I ask.  
  
"Yeah, Hiroshi?"  
  
"What are we going to have for breakfast?"  
  
"Oh really, Hiroshi..."  
  
I give him a pouty look and he melts to goo. "Sato-chan, you can't expect me to  
go traipsing through the forest with nothing on my stomach, do you?"  
  
He grins and kisses my nose. "You're evil, you know that?"  
  
I blink innocently. "Me?"  
  
"Don't do that or I don't think we'll get any walking done," he says with a  
delighted little grin and I squeak and blush, "what do you want for breakfast?"  
  
"Do we have cereal?" I ask meekly.  
  
Satoshi laughs. "You're really going for the childish outlook today, aren't  
you?"  
  
"Got a problem with it?" I retort, sticking out my tongue.  
~~~~~  
I laugh. "Not at all, Hiro-chaaaan," I tease him. "It's really adorable,  
actually. Just kind of weird."  
  
"I miss being kids," he replies. "We didn't have to worry about anything."  
  
I raise an eyebrow. "Of course we didn't...except for grades, and what other  
people thought of us, and-"  
  
"OK, OK," he laughs, waving his hands. "Point taken!"  
  
The Pokemon episode is over, so I stand up and offer Hiro my hand, hauling him  
up as well. "Come on, let's get your garbage disposal of a stomach some  
breakfast, and then we can go for a walk."  
~~~~~  
After we're finished with breakfast (and my Sato-chan says that *I* have a  
garbage disposal for a stomach), Satoshi and I find ourselves walking outside.  
You know, I was right...  
  
It is nice out... and the flowers are nice... heck, everything is nice. I think  
I'm having a problem... you know, with describing things today.  
  
I don't care, though. I'm just happy to be with him. And the great thing? Soon  
we're going to be able to have that dinner in town... We've spent most of the  
day playing around and just enjoying ourselves...  
  
I cling onto his arm as we start back towards the cabin. "Have I told you that I  
loved you lately?"  
  
"Hmmm..." he sounds thoughtful. "No."  
  
"Well, I do. Love you, Satoshi."  
  
I love the way he looks after I've said that... "I love you too."  
  
Because he has no idea just what those words do to me...  
  
"I'm glad we have this weekend together. You always come up with the best plans  
for us, Satoshi."  
  
"Well, you inspire me."  
  
I laugh softly. "Thank you. Now..."  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
The cabin is in sight now... "You're not going to give me even a teeny clue  
about tonight, are you?"  
  
"Nope." He replies with a laugh.  
  
"But Satoshi!"  
  
"Don't you want to be surprised?"  
  
"Well, of course I do... I just want to know now..."  
  
"Hiroshi..."  
  
"You know I can wait for it, Sato-chan... because it's going to be perfect."  
  
"You have that much faith in me?" he asks with a smile.  
  
"That much and more. Come on, let's take a shower now!"  
  
God this has been a fun weekend... and it's still just the beginning... so it  
can only get better.  
~~~~~  
We're both dressed up in semi-formal outfits and ready to go to dinner. I put on  
a mock-gallant show for him, opening his car door with a sweep of my hand. "My  
lord," I say, in a gallant tone of voice, and he giggles. I hop into the  
driver's seat and we head off to town.  
  
Our destination is a steak house on the edge of town, where the woods begin to  
swallow it up. I again open his car door for him and tease him some more. I  
laugh, because I realize we're flirting like schoolchildren again.  
  
"Love you, Hiro," I tell him with a smile. "I don't say that enough."  
  
"Yes you do," he says. "Only about every ten minutes!"  
  
"Oh?" I reply archly. "Do you mind?"  
  
"Not in the slightest," he replies, as we go inside.  
  
I speak briefly with the waitress, and she nods and smiles, leading us into the  
back room, shutting the door behind us. A table is set for two, with flowers on  
Hiroshi's plate, a note tied around the stem saying, "From Satoshi, with love on  
our anniversary." White candles match the tablecloth, and a bottle of champagne  
is the centerpiece.  
  
"Oh, Sato-chan, it's beautiful," Hiroshi says, hugging me around the waist.  
  
I grin, reaching behind me to press play on the CD player behind me. A familiar  
tune begins playing softly, and I draw Hiro against me, swaying softly to the  
music.  
~~~~~  
Oh god... I feel like I'm being overwhelmed with too much emotion and sensory  
input. But... I thought that earlier was perfect...this has to be nearly  
divine...  
  
It's almost like the first time we ever danced together...but this has years and  
years behind it and it's just so beyond words... "I'm so glad we met, Satoshi,"  
I whisper under my breath, pressing closer against him.  
  
"I'm glad I tried running in on those bullies who wanted to take your lunch  
money," he replies just as softly.  
  
"We've changed a lot, haven't we...?" I ask after a moment, swaying, swaying.  
  
"But we're still the same..." he replies and it just blends in right with the  
music. I feel like we're spinning...or maybe it's just the world... Whatever it  
is, I don't want it to end. I don't want this moment to end. But I know we're  
going to have to go on...  
  
Just...for the moment...this is better than anything else...  
  
"Hiro?" I hear Satoshi murmur, and I look up. Our eyes meet, and then he leans  
close to kiss me. And...he's kiss me a million times before it seems...but this  
is better than anything before...  
~~~~~  
I pull Hiroshi closer to me as we kiss. At the moment, it feels like...I'm being  
given an incredible gift- I could swear Hiro's soul is melting into mine...or  
maybe it's the other way 'round. I honestly can't tell and don't care.  
  
"Hiro..." I'm muttering against his mouth. "I love you, I love you, I love..."  
  
He giggles. "I love you, too."  
  
I break away, looking into his soft, smiling blue eyes. "You want to eat?"  
  
He nods, and I poke my head out the door, gesturing the waitress over.  
***  
Later that night, I lie with Hiroshi in my arms, the moonlight shining on his  
face. I feel like I melt into the shadows, like we personify the night. We go  
together so well....and, like the moonlight and the shadows, we will always be  
together.  
~~~~~  
(Shigeru)  
  
I peek in the window to see Hiroshi and Satoshi spooned together, and smile.  
They don't need me anymore. I think I realized that awhile ago, but something  
happened tonight. Their hearts beat as one.  
  
I smile and float off to visit Nanami and Kasumi. If I see that they will be all  
right, I think I can put my soul at rest.  
  
Nanami and Kasumi are sleeping chest to chest with their arms wrapped around  
each other. Sometimes I wonder how they keep from getting stuck to each other.  
They certainly look like they're tangled up. It gives a new meaning to "wrapped  
up in each other". A small smile crosses Kasumi's face, and I see her tuck her  
head under Nanami's chin.  
  
They will be all right, as well.  
  
I float into the room. Kasumi was apparently not asleep before, although she  
looked as though she was. I want to talk to her. The level-headed Kasumi will be  
the best one to tell.  
  
"Shhh," I whisper. "Don't wake her up."  
  
She gives me an odd look. "What are you doing in here, Shigeru? Hentai!"  
  
"No, no!" I protest, waving my hands. "Not at all! I just wanted to talk to  
you!"  
  
"It couldn't _wait_?"  
  
"No...Kasumi, I'm leaving."  
  
"Leaving?" Her tone is almost incredulous. "For where?"  
  
I smile. "I don't know, exactly. Somewhere I should have gone a long time ago."  
  
Her face pales a little and she tries to sit up. I solidify enough to hold her  
down so she doesn't disturb Nanami. "Shigeru- are you sure? I mean, you've been  
here so long-"  
  
I sigh. "Honestly, Kasumi, I have no idea why I was tied here in the first  
place. Maybe it was my destiny to meet Satoshi and Hiroshi- and you and Nanami  
as well- but I died before I could fulfill it. But my soul was put at rest  
tonight, and I'm...tired, Kasumi. I've been here longer than I should have, and  
you guys don't need me anymore."  
  
"But Shigeru-!" she protests.  
  
I can feel myself growing lighter, and I think I'm glowing softly. Kasumi gasps,  
and I look behind me and see wings. I flutter them experimentally.  
  
"I love you, Kasumi. Tell the others that I'm fine and I love them too.  
Goodbye!" My feet push off the ground and I'm fluttering in midair.  
  
"Goodbye, Shigeru, I love you too," she whispers, so softly I can barely hear.  
She then waves a little, almost desperately. My last view before I fly through  
the ceiling is of Kasumi trying to discreetly wipe away a tear while stroking  
Nanami's dark hair.  
  
But I know they'll be all right.  
  
Because now they have each other.  



End file.
